The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1887-02-04
Friday. Feb. 4, 1887.
Furnishing School Children.

fuOISNlnG SCnOOl CD1ldrSn.
We have received a very serious and
earnest complaint from poor man re-
siding near Perryville, of the brutal
punishment which was inflicted on his
twelve year old boy by couple of
teachers. One female and her as
sistant male. The boy was held by
the male and beaten by the female, till
he was unco. .scious. The father in
his account of the "beating' as he
terms the CT stigaton, says:
"When this beating was done all
the school was turned out except some
very small children, and some of
them came near fainting, for they
thought Paul was dead. When he
came to himself again he found him
self lying under the desk. She 1.-THE fe.
ma teacher) was gone, He crawled
out and found he could not go .on one
foot, it was hurt SO badly. A form
er letter explained that the boys foot
got fastened under the desk in the me
lee where he was held by the assistant,
being unable to extricate himself while
the female applied the stick with both
AohuS'J AAc az 'chStu SoG out VI Iue
house and sat down, when the boys
gathered round him. Some told him
they thought he had gone up &c.
They asked him how he liked the wat
er thrown in his face, but he said he
did net know anything about the water
or when he got under the desk" A
former letter explained that when the
boy tainted the teacher threw water on
his face to revive him."
This is an extract taken from the plain
forward, simple narrative of the father
who is evidently well disposed, kind
hearted man, though iljiterate. His
simple, pathetic story is Que Of COM
plant of serious injury that has gone
without redress, rather than thirst
for revenge.
We could scarcely credit the story of
this fiendish outrage. but the simple
narrative of the parent whose conscien-
cious scruples, lest he should eyerstate
the plain truth, ran through his shock
ing story. We presume there are strict
laws governing the conduct and pre-
scribing the power of teachers in the
government of the public schools. But
itappears to us that, the moment the
School Board hear of such brutal
outrage as is unfolded in this mans
homely narrative, that it would be OBJ
ligatory on them to call a special M eet-
ing, summon the parties before them,
and if any teacher was found guilty of
INJECTING lnhumaE punishment on a
pupil that teacher should be 1T one dis
missed. Corporal punishment in pub
lie schools should be strongly suppress
ed and no boy or girl, man or woman
employed to govern a school who is
unable to govern his or her own temp
er. Allow brutal person to manage
children, and they will also become in
scuiated as it were, with a degree of the
driper's brutality and will be found i'm
posing upon and treating harshly the
weaker ones among their companions.
Give the pupils teacher who governs
by moral power and sweetness of dis
position, and theyls will grow
kindly toward each other, and tender
and humane in disposition. To teach
lessons from text books is only part of
teachers duty, but to set examples of
ungovernable violence and brutality
are no part of teachers duty, and
should be cause for immediate dismiss,
al from business they are wholly un-
qualified for conducting properly.
If a boy has been subject to training
at home so faulty that he is incorrigi-
BILE and unmanageable by such disci-
pline as should be employed at school,
let him be quietly sent home in dis
grace and made to feel as we'll as his
parents, that he and his family are too
near on level with the brutes to be
allowed to contaminate other children
by associating with them.